RISING LEASE REVENUE TRIGGERS $2.5M FOR PARK

San Diego 
With revenue rising again for hotels and other businesses, a fundraising mechanism approved by city voters has been triggered for the first time and will lead to $2.5 million in additional improvements this year to Mission Bay Park.

The money is available because Proposition C, which 67 percent of voters favored in 2008, calls for a significant portion of excess revenue generated by leases there to be reinvested in the 4,235-acre park.

The initiative was supposed to be a financial boon for Mission Bay Park, but the economic recession saw lease revenue dip and no extra money was generated until now.

City Councilman Kevin Faulconer announced the $2.5 million sum during his State of the District address Wednesday night. The money will go toward an estimated $400 million in repairs and other planned park projects.

Proposition C listed seven goals in order of priority for the extra park funding. Dredging topped the list, followed by wetland expansion, stabilizing erosion controls, expanding preserves for endangered or threatened species, completion of bicycle and pedestrian paths, restoration of sea walls and other deferred maintenance.

The remaining 25 percent of the revenue is to be spent on six regional parks, including Balboa, Chollas Lake and Otay River Valley.